APEC in San Francisco: Biden, Harris attend fundraiser as protesters chant outside
The Chronicle, STAFF: "Today marks the beginning of the busiest period of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in San Francisco as the international conference kicks into high gear. Tens of thousands of visitors, including corporate executives, foreign dignitaries and protestors, are descending on San Francisco. President Biden and Vice-President Harris landed Tuesday, as did Chinese President Xi Jinping; Biden is expected to meet with Xi on Wednesday, reportedly at the beautiful Filoli estate in San Mateo County.
Many high-profile attendees are not expected to arrive in San Francisco until Wednesday; however, lane closures on the Bay Bridge and other roadway impacts have taken effect, with traffic backing up to Richmond during Tuesday morning’s commute."
In San Francisco, Asian Americans have mixed feelings about Biden meeting with Chinese President Xi
The Chronicle, QUEENIE WONG: "Along the lantern-lined streets of Chinatown, lion dancers, food vendors and thousands of people celebrated Asian culture ahead of the arrival of world leaders in San Francisco.
A large red-and-yellow banner displayed a warm greeting: “Welcome Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Leaders.”"
Education Policy – The Role of School Boards (PODCAST)
Capitol Weekly, STAFF: "This Special Episode of the Capitol Weekly Podcast was recorded live at Capitol Weekly’s Conference on Education Policy which was held in Sacramento on Tuesday, November 7, 2023
This is Panel 2 – THE ROLE OF SCHOOL BOARDS
PANELISTS: Amy Christianson, California School Boards Association; Marshall Tuck, EdVoice; Richard Zeiger, Zeiger StrategiesRising Stars: Cynthia Alvarez, Chief of Staff to Sen. Lena Gonzalez"
Rising Stars: Cynthia Alvarez, Chief of Staff to Sen. Lena Gonzalez
Capitol Weekly, SENA CHRISTIAN: "For Cynthia Alvarez, the two weeks leading up to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s approval of a major climate package in September 2022 were “insane,” as she worked to secure votes on one piece of legislation in that package to create a 3,200-foot buffer zone around new oil and gas wells near sensitive areas like schools, homes and parks where people could be harmed by emissions.
As chief of staff to California State Sen. Lena Gonzalez (D-Long Beach), Alvarez worked furiously on Senate Bill 1137, negotiating on a piece of legislation that had faced significant opposition. This was a “very big win” for communities of color and environmental justice advocates, says Alvarez, 34. “It felt great, very humbling to do something for communities it means a lot for.”"
After they were robbed at gunpoint, this is what a Czech news crew asked S.F. Mayor Breed
The Chronicle, RACHEL SWAN: "Days after a startling encounter with three armed robbers in San Francisco’s North Beach neighborhood, members of a Czech news crew remained bewildered — both by the attack and by the overwhelming response from city residents and leaders.
“We have all kinds of people offering to help,” TV journalist Bohumil Vostal said in an interview Tuesday, at which point his phone was still buzzing with inquiries from reporters, well-wishers and officials trying to direct him to victim services."
The Pride flag is gone. Library books are under review. It’s a new era of backlash politics in California
CALMatters, ALEXEI KOSEFF: "The winds of change blew swiftly and relentlessly into this oceanside city in northern Orange County.
Not long after winning election last November, the new conservative majority of the Huntington Beach city council adopted an ordinance that prevents the rainbow LGBTQ+ flag from flying at city hall during Pride Month."
‘A Christmas without lights?’ Families struggle to pay bills as California regulators consider electric rate increases
CALMatters, JUSTO ROBLES: "Angelica Vásquez’s anxiety soared when she read the notice on her most recent electric bill: “Please pay $135.81 by 10/26 to avoid service termination.”
But the warning was part of a bigger problem. Vásquez owed a total of $400.68 to Pacific Gas & Electric Co."
No place is safe: New national report on climate change details sweeping effects
CALMatters, ALEJANDRO LAZO: "A new national climate assessment paints a dismal picture of the nationwide impacts of climate change, driving food shortages, intensifying droughts, floods and wildfires, spreading diseases and air pollution and jeopardizing public infrastructure like roads and railways.
The federal report, released today, ranked California among the top five states suffering economic effects from climate-related natural disasters. A chapter about the risks and effects in the Southwest contains a long and alarming list of projections, particularly the impact of drought on water supplies, agriculture, diseases and ecosystems."
Satellite photos show storm far off the California coast take unusual turn
The Chronicle, GERRY DIAZ, ANTHONY EDWARDS: "After nearly a week of speculation, a wet weather system finally approached California on Tuesday. But rather than bringing widespread rainfall to the Bay Area, the storm split into two separate areas of low pressure, as shown in the satellite image above.
Two areas of low pressure are performing an intricate dance over the Pacific Ocean as they circle around each other, a movement known as the Fujiwhara effect. Satellite imagery Tuesday morning showed the areas of low pressure spinning hundreds of miles out to sea off the California coast."
Federal judge tosses Huntington Beach’s attempt to exempt itself from state housing laws
The Chronicle, BOB EGELKO: "The state has won the latest round in its legal battle to increase housing construction in the Orange County coastal community of Huntington Beach.
Attorney General Rob Bonta sued Huntington Beach in March after the City Council voted to stop processing applications from homeowners who want to build additional housing units on their property. He said the construction is allowed by state law and can’t be forbidden by local governments.
Hours later, Huntington Beach filed suit in federal court, arguing that those housing laws don’t apply to charter cities, which govern most of their own affairs. The city argued that a 2018 California law that declared housing shortages to be a matter of “statewide concern” had no factual basis, violated local authority and required city officials to “replace their free speech … with the words of the State that advance the State’s political agenda.”"
More than 40 California hospitals closed maternity wards in a decade. Is yours one of them?
CALMatters, KRISTEN HWANG, ANA B. IBARRA, ERICA YEE: "Few regions in California have escaped the impact of maternity ward closures in the past decade. At least 46 hospitals have permanently closed or suspended labor and delivery since 2012, a CalMatters analysis of hospital records found. About 60% of the closures have taken place in just the last three years.
These closures are being driven by a combination of factors, including high costs, inflation, labor shortages and declining birth rates, according to hospital administrators and experts."
READ MORE -- As hospitals close labor wards, large stretches of California are without maternity care -- CALMatters, ANA B. IBARRA, KRISTEN HWANG, ERICA YEE
Districts groan as state board sets in motion Newsom’s big changes to funding formula
EdSource, JOHN FENSTERWALD: "In pursuit of narrowing cavernous gaps in student achievement, Gov. Gavin Newsom this year made changes to the Local Control Funding Formula, the state’s school funding law, that are among the most far-reaching since the law’s adoption a decade ago. School districts are bracing for the extra paperwork and demands.
Newsom’s directive requires that starting in 2024-25, districts and charter schools spell out how they will address poor performance and target funding for improvements in every school where one or more of the state’s 13 student groups rank red — the lowest of five performance bands on the California School Dashboard. Until now, state law required only improvement efforts for districts as a whole."
Israel-Hamas war roils UC over the line between free speech and unacceptable behavior
LA Times, TERESA WATANABE: "At UC Davis, a professor posted warnings to “zionist journalists” with emojis of weapons and dripping blood. At UCLA, some students beat a piñata of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu while a teach-in about “the crisis in Palestine” drew so many threats the organizers moved it online. At UC San Diego, UC Santa Cruz and UCLA, academic departments have issued political statements variously condemning Israel or the militant group Hamas, locked in a war that has killed thousands of civilians in the land both claim as their rightful home.
Across the University of California, scores of students on both sides are reporting harassment, intimidation and profound anxiety over their safety during what many longtime UC faculty and administrators say is the most emotionally charged time they’ve ever experienced on campus."
‘It’s just heartbreaking.’ For Palestinian American businesses, a time of harassment — and support
LA Times, MARISA GERBER, RONALD D. WHITE: " Last week, Fatmah Muhammad answered a phone call from someone who appeared to be an inquisitive customer.
He knew she was Palestinian American, the caller said, and he was interested in placing an order from her company, Knafeh Queens, which specializes in a sweet-and-savory dessert she learned to make from her mother."
‘Historic’ NIMBY playbook hits Bay Area, and could affect new housing throughout the region
The Chronicle, JK DINEEN: "A stealth effort to have the state designate one of San Mateo’s wealthiest neighborhoods as a historic district could create a playbook for other Bay Area enclaves looking to avoid complying with new state laws requiring that denser buildings be allowed in areas zoned for single-family homes, according to housing advocates.
This month, a group of San Mateo homeowners filed an application to the State Historical Resources Commission to designate San Mateo’s Baywood neighborhood as historic. If the group succeeds, it would exempt the genteel subdivision from SB9, which allows homeowners to build up to four residential units on a single-family lot."
DA demands Sacramento’s Camp Resolution for homeless be emptied over toxic concerns
Sacramento Bee, SAM STANTON: "Sacramento County District Attorney Thien Ho ratcheted up his fight with the city of Sacramento over the homeless crisis, issuing a letter suggesting officials may face “criminal liability” for allowing unhoused citizens to live at a toxic site dubbed Camp Resolution.
The move is the latest in a series of efforts by Ho to force the city to take greater action to police the growing number of homeless camps throughout the city, and raises the suggestion that he may pursue misdemeanor prosecutions of officials for allowing a “public nuisance” at the former vehicle maintenance yard at 2225 Colfax St. in Old North Sacramento."
Repairs to reopen 10 Freeway in downtown L.A. could take 3 to 5 weeks — likely less, engineer says
LA Times, NATHAN SOLIS, THOMAS CURWEN, SALVADOR HERNANDEZ, KAREN GARCIA: "A section of the 10 Freeway in downtown Los Angeles that was damaged by a massive fire over the weekend will not need to be demolished, officials announced Tuesday, but repairs could take weeks, complicating commutes through one of the country’s busiest freeway corridors.
“This is not a demo operation. This is a repair operation,” Gov. Gavin Newsom said Tuesday morning at the site of the fire, which started under the overpass at Alameda Street early Saturday.
Under the 10 Freeway: Immigrant businesses scraped by while landlord dodged Caltrans
LA Times, RACHEL URANGA, MATT HAMILTON, RUBEN VIVES: "For more than decade, Rudy Serafin showed up to his makeshift office underneath the 10 Freeway as the sun came out and the roar of the morning commute shook the ground below his feet.
With a generator, his cellphone and a portable toilet, the 49-year-old immsigrant from Michoacán, Mexico, worked alongside a dozen others operating small businesses in spaces they rented between the concrete columns holding up the interstate. They were mechanics, truckers, garment suppliers, recyclers and pallet distributors, struggling to get by in the region’s economy. They paid rent to a Calabasas businessman who leased the land from Caltrans and, according to court records filed by the agency, illegally sublet it to them at far higher rates.
Planned Sacramento light rail station won’t be built anytime soon, board decides
Sacramento Bee, THERESA CLIFT: "A massive new River District public housing complex will not get a light rail station anytime soon, a group of local elected officials decided Monday in a 6-5 vote.
Sacramento City Council members Katie Valenzuela, Caity Maple, Rick Jennings and Sean Loloee, as well as County Supervisor Phil Serna voted in support of building the station, at North 12th Street and Richard Boulevard, during Monday’s Regional Transit board meeting. County Supervisors Patrick Kennedy and Pat Hume, as well as Elk Grove Mayor Bobbie Singh-Allen, Rancho Cordova Mayor Linda Budge, Citrus Heights councilman Bret Daniels, and Folsom councilman Mike Kozlowski voted against it."
